Moving On
by TheAnimeWriterLover
Summary: What if Ippo, in the very end, lost interest in Kumi? What if he found someone else, more supportive, less dramatic and so much more? His boxer friends don't know about her. His former love interest doesn't know about her. In fact, most people in his life don't know about her. It won't stay like this forever, but such is life. Ippo/OC


In his life, Ippo made many decisions that were not out of his best interest. It was only after he first met Takamura and discovered boxing that he started to decide things for himself. It made him happy. Not only did he discover something that he loved to do with all his soul. He also found friends and enemies who had his respect. Yet, the boxer admitted that out of all those decisions, there was one that changed everything.

After a long time of chasing after Kumi, the interest he had in her died out. It wasn't because of her brother. It wasn't because he was a coward that couldn't confess his feelings. He did, a few times, but all fell on deaf ears. It also wasn't because his friends pushed him too hard to confess to her. It wasn't because his mother showed a bit of disapproval of her, though he had no idea to why. In truth, the reason wasn't even an outside force. It was simple. He grew tired of it all. He grew tired of chasing after her. He grew tired that his confession of love never changed anything. Ippo grew tired of being the one to do the chasing. Why couldn't Kumi come up to him and talk to him? Why was it that he had to read her mind, only to be wrong? It made him wonder about all sorts of things.

If, and that was a big _if_ , he became successful in his confession, then what? He may not have gone out with her on proper dates to get to know each other better, but they were friends. As friends, he knew about her personality enough to allow him to think things over.

Sure, she was cute. Of course, she was intelligent. Kumi was also loving, supportive, kind, shy and so much more. Yet, there were negatives, too big for him to ignore. Drama and hidden hatred for boxing were the most clear. As much as she cared for both him and her brother, she hated the sport. She told him indirectly the first time they talked. She didn't get what was so great about the sport. All the brown headed young woman saw were men punching and getting injured. This killed every supportive action she showed. When he thought about it, Ippo realized that they were half heartfelt.

It was best that they stayed as friends. No long-term relationship comes out of such actions, he decided. That wasn't what he wanted. Ippo wanted to date someone that he knew that he'd marry in the future and raise a family with. Not go on simple dates and try to hide how dreadful the relationship was. That was why he made sure to put a line between them, before any more romantic feelings grew.

With all this considered, it was of no surprised that he found someone else. It took 4 years, but he found her. He found the woman that he knew that he'd marry someday. This was funny, as they had dated for only a year. But it was already on their mind, even though neither mentioned it. They both voiced their want for a long-term relationship in the beginning, so to not lead the other on. They also had simpler goals of wanting to raise a family. Overall, his girlfriend wanted happiness in the end. To her, that was her ultimate life goal. To die one day and be happy and satisfied with the life that she led. Ippo was rather surprised, but impressed at the same time. It wasn't something that he expected from anyone. It made him wonder about life in general.

Yuki Kobayashi was her name. Nobody knew about her other than his mother, his best friend and all the regulars of the family store. All the people in the categories were quite happy and approved of the young woman. The same thing happened with her family, when it came to him. To her parents, especially, all that mattered to them was that he was a good man that cared for their daughter. The only people that didn't know about her were his boxer friends and coach. The reason why they don't know about her was because there was never an opportunity for them to meet. She was a busy woman, quite happy with that too. As much as Yuki loved boxing, she was a middle school teacher. The black headed woman only had her job for a few years, but took it seriously. Due to that, she showed up to all his boxing matches, but left right after. There were always papers to grade, plans to make, permission slips to write up and so much more. Ippo understood and accepted it. She was there for him, more so than Kumi ever was. It was more than he could ask of her. Either way, they always celebrated with his mom, best friend and her parents in the end. So it wasn't a negative in the relationship.

The thought of her brought a soft smile on his lips. With a light heart, Ippo zipped up his bag. With it thrown over his shoulder, the boxer began to make his journey back home under the sunset sky. The boxer walked passed his friends with a quick bid of farewell. The trio stopped in their tracks and stared at his back with confusion.

"Oh, Ippo, you're finished? It's only 6."

Kimura asked as he put on his boxing gloves. His best friend, Aoki, copied his actions. Both were ready to go a few rounds in the ring.

"Yeah, don't you want to see who'll win between dumb and dumber?"

Takamura asked as he stopped going at the punching bag. The poor thing swung a bit, as it mirrored the boxer's past opponents by how beaten up it looked.

"Look who's talking you bastard!"

Aoki cried out as he threw a nasty glare at the older man. The huge boxer cupped his ear as he gave a wide, mocking smile.

"Sorry, what was that? I don't speak dumb."

Ippo and Kimura sighed at the typical argument and faced each other again. The former of the two shook his head and smiled.

"No, I have a date to go to." The whole room froze at the revelation. It made the shortest boxer try to hold back a smile and chuckles. Their faces were now imprinted in his mind forever. It was also quite good material to tease them back for all the years of them doing the same to him. "Well, I got to go or Yuki-chan won't be happy about my lateness. I'll come back tomorrow for more training. Good night!"

With that, Ippo sprinted down the road before they could grab him and demand answers. The trio of men finally snapped out of it and ran out of the building. Unfortunately, they were too late. Their friend was gone. The younger boxer duo talked with each other, shock still clear in their voices.

"Did… d-did he just say _Yuki-chan_?"

"I thought he was still pinning after Kumi-chan. But now that I think about it… they aren't hanging out as much as they used to."

As they spoke, they took no notice to their older friend. The giant boxer's body shook with anger, until finally he exploded.

"How dare that little bastard go behind our backs and date someone!? How _dare_ he not introduce her to me, the great Takamura?"

He boasted with a hero pose, show casing his usual cockiness. His friends stared at him with unimpressed expressions. They muttered to one another once again.

"I can see why he won't bring her here, with this guy around."

Aoki spoke first. He squeaked when the fierce champion turned on him with fire in his eyes. The man raised his hands and made his way to the guy, with clear intents to wanting to strangle him. Unfortunately, the younger of the two wasn't fast enough. Now, he was busy to fight for his life while Takamura howled at him in anger. Kimura shook his head at the interaction. He looked down the road that Ippo ran off on and smiled with relief. He feared for his friend's love life. He watched for years as the young man tried to confess to Kumi but failed at every turn. There were times that he tried to help the guy, but the plans also failed.

It was sad, when Kimura thought about it.

Ippo was almost 30. He didn't have much time left for his boxing career. This brought the concern of what he'd do once he retires. It might not have helped things when Kimura and Aoki spoke a lot about their soon retirements. The date that the duo agreed upon was after their next match, which took place next month. Kimura already found someone and he wanted to take over his family's business. Aoki proposed a few months ago to Tomiko and was ready to take over the Ramen shop that he worked at. They were both in their mid-30s, where retirement was the most logical decision. They had a great time being professional boxers, but they had to move on. Their bodies won't be able to keep up anymore. Heck, it already started. They weren't as fast as they were a few years ago. They grew more tired than before. Of course, the conditions weren't extreme, but they were noticeable.

Even Takamura appeared to be considering retirement. Of course, he didn't say anything about it. He'd laugh the thought off with his usual cocky smile and threw a joke in there. Yet, his eyes lost the shine to them when the subject got brought up. It was clear to the three younger boxers that the thought had already passed his mind. He was older than both he and Aoki by a few years. He should have retired when he was their age, but didn't. After all, he was the renowned boxing genius. Age didn't matter to him. He still had a few years to go. At least until he reached 40.

With the three of them considering retirement, it could be the reason to why Ippo didn't say Kumi's name. Everyone around them tried their best to help the two, but it was up to them in the end. Ippo always put in the effort, but the young woman didn't. It only made sense that the young man finally gave up and moved on. Years flew by and life was short. _None_ of them could dwell on things too much. Their profession didn't allow it. If they did, there'd be so many things they'd miss and later regret in their lives.

This made Kimura wonder about this girlfriend.

"That's it! We are going to spy on them."

As he thought about it, Takamura finally let go of the weak Aoki and announced. The boxer looked up at his older friend with a raised eyebrow.

"And where are we going to find them?"

"Follow the great Takamura and I will use my Sixth Sense to find them!"

Kimura looked down at the KO'd Aoki and shook his head. Typical. He only hoped that they won't get caught this time. But knowing a certain someone in the group, he'd blow their cover by sheer stupidity and curiosity.

-ooOOoo-

Yuki stood outside the park near her apartment as she waited. The long, tiring day got pushed out of her mind by force. Still, there was a hint of it in her eyes. Though, she'd deny it to not worry other people. She took in a lungful of warm, summer air before she exhaled through her nose. Her shoulders eased down finally and her body felt at peace, for now. She brought up her hand to look at the wrist watch.

 _7:15_

 _Huh, he's late a bit._ The black headed 27 year old thought. She shook her head and grinned, not allowing it to bother her. Her apartment was a bit far from his family's fishing shop, so it was of no surprise. The young teacher told her boyfriend that she'd meet him at his place, but he refused. Typical. It was funny, really, how stubborn they were about such things. In the end, it came to her giving in so to not start a meaningless fight that neither wanted. With that thought in mind, a familiar voiced broke the silence.

"Yuki"

The voice cried out. Brown eyes looked at the direction of the voice and found a figure wave as it ran to her. The woman's smile widened without thought at the sight of him.

"Ippo" She greeted him with a hug when he got close enough, to which he returned. "You didn't have to run over here, you know. We could have met half way."

"No, it's fine. Coach told me I need to run more outside of training, anyways." Ippo replied as he pulled away a bit to look down at her. His arms around her waist only tightened, as he savoured the feeling of her near him. His dark eyes soften at the sight of her. "Ready for our usual walk?"

"Mhm"

The woman nodded with clear excitement. This was their favourite pass time, simply walking around. It didn't matter the time of day, but the evening was by far the best. It was the quietest time of the day and had the best view by far, Yuki decided. She loved to look up at the star filled sky. It was something that she got from her mother at an early age. To her, it was something super special. She never shared with anyone about her deep love for it. That somehow didn't stop from Ippo from finding out. That was how the whole night walking event started. They always walked during the day, when they had the time. After he found out, the man asked her to share the experience with him. When he asked that with deep want to understand her a bit more, it warmed her heart.

The couple finally got out of the hug, but they didn't keep their hands to themselves for long. Their fingers intertwined in a firm grip as they started to walk. They leaned against each other without much thought. The silence between them was that of comfort. Both needed it as their week was filled with nothing but noise and craziness. Their walk was aimless. They allowed their feet to go where it wanted. The knowledge of the areas that they went to was enough that they knew how to get back if need be. Apartment buildings soon disappeared from sight only to be replaced by stores. With a sharp turn, they walked through a park, which led to an open field.

Neither noticed that a trio of men followed them.

"Why are we doing this again?"

Kimura, the only rational man of the trio, asked with clear annoyance. Not that one could blame him, as a certain someone forced them to crawl on the grass. As if they could camouflage into it. But common sense was lost on the other two, as they were really focused on the couple.

"Tch, they're too far away and it's too dark. I can't see the chick!"

Aoki grumbled. He wanted to check her out and tease his younger friend about her. Oh, the things he could say and do. The other man thought along the same lines, but with a bit of a darker tone. To Takamura, _anything_ that could be used to embarrass the guy was good enough for him.

"Shut up you morons. Are you two trying to get us caught?"

He whisper shouted at the two. Both rolled their eyes at him in responds.

"We're crawling on the ground in an open field. I think we're going to get caught either way."

"Yeah and Ippo isn't exactly stupid. We don't even know how sharp that woman is."

Kimura said after his friend spoke. That last thought unnerved him a bit, since they didn't know anything about the woman. That fear was not unfounded, as the couple stopped. The trio stopped their crawling and held their breaths. The woman pulled away from Ippo a bit and looked around. They heard the conversation, though it was a bit quiet due to the distance.

"Yuki, what's the matter? Is something bothering you?"

"Um…" The black headed woman voiced with unsureness. "Is it… is it me, or are we being followed?"

The boyfriend and the three boxers tensed at the revelation.

"What… do you mean by that?"

Ippo asked with a careful tone. Yet, the trio of friends spotted the dark tone underneath it all. He knew they were there. They were busted! While Takamura could handle the boxer, the other two never could. It was even worse if they pushed the right buttons. While everyone thought that sweet Ippo wouldn't hurt a fly outside of boxing, they knew better. Underneath the cheerfulness, kindness and politeness raged a monster. They met that monster a few times and didn't want to imagine what it'd be like to fight him in such a state. The thought sent shivers down their spine. Yes, even the great Takamura. Though, he'd never admit it until the day he'd die.

"I don't know. It's feels like there are eyes on us, but I might be imagining things." Yuki shrugged as she stopped her search. Light laughter escaped her lips. "I'm so used to teaching a class and having eyes on me that the feeling has followed me out of school."

Her boyfriend relaxed a bit, but he gave a one look around, in case. With satisfaction that he found nothing, both took a seat on the grass. Yuki rested her head on Ippo's shoulder. He sent her a soft smile. The thoughts of the possible stalkers left his mind. The said stalkers looked at their head player for further direction. The oldest boxer of them nudged his head forward but placed a finger on his lips. The duo nodded and proceeded with the plan. They crawled closer, but made sure to be super quiet. The voices became clearer, but from their position they still had no view of the woman. They all gritted their teeth in frustration.

"Ippo?"

"Hm…?"

The boxers stopped once more. Their hearts rose to their throats and beat painfully as they thought they were officially caught. What they heard next wasn't what they expected.

"Is something the matter? You've been really quiet lately." Ippo looked at his girlfriend with surprise. She raised her head to look at him properly. For the first time in the evening, the trio finally saw what she looked like. _She's… she's so_ average _._ They thought at the same time with confusion and disappointment. This Yuki person looked like any other Japanese woman. There wasn't something about her that they'd classify as cute or hot. Simply… average. It made them wonder how Ippo left someone as cute as Kumi for someone like her. They heard their friend chuckle a bit. "How is it possible that you can always tell when something is wrong?"

Yuki smiled with equal humour.

"I look after emotional teenagers on a daily basis. I think I have the skill to know when something is wrong."

"You simply don't want to admit that you can read the body language really well."

"That too"

The two shared a small laugh, which died down when Ippo looked away with a worried expression. He didn't say anything at first. The woman didn't pressure him. She stayed quiet and allowed him to gather his thoughts. Her eyes never left his figure, however. The brown pair watched on with patience and a tiny smile of encouragement. The man's shoulder heaved down and, at last, he spoke.

"Kimura-san and Aoki-san are going to retire after their match."

Yuki's eyebrows shot up in recognition.

"Your friends? Aren't they a bit older than you?" At his nod, she continued with a hum of thoughtfulness. She looked up at the clear night sky. "Then it only makes sense that they'd retire. What's bothering you about that?"

Ippo sighed and rested his back against the grass. His folded hands cushioned his head from the ground. Once more, he took a bit of time before he spoke again.

"It's not just them. Takamura-san is also thinking about it. I… I don't know. I can't imagine going back to the gym with them gone. We've been training for so long. We did so _much_ together. To have none of that anymore. To not go back to the summer camp with them. To not get excited about major fights we have lined up. It all feels…"

"Wrong?"

"Yeah"

The named trio looked on in surprise. This was the first time that they heard Ippo's thoughts about the topic. As Kimura feared, their talks about it have influenced their younger friend. But, to his shock, not with what he expected. Aoki stared at the grass, like it was something interesting. Takamura frowned at what he heard and decided to listen on. They watched the woman as she looked back at their friend. The smile was gone and replaced with that of understanding.

"Dear, a boxer's life is a hard but short one. You know that. It's the same with every other athletic sport. There is a limit that our human body can't pass. Unfortunately, age is one of them. If they decided that it's time to move on, then all you can do is support them. They didn't tell you that they didn't want to see you again afterwards, did they?"

"No…"

Ippo whispered as he stared off into the distance. A hand cupped his cheek, to which he looked up at the owner of it. The cold thumb stroked the warm cheek in comfort.

"You all have a long life ahead of you. From the way you talk about them, your friendship will live on for a long time. Don't lose hope, only because they're leaving a phase in their lives. You will always have each other in the end."

No words were said afterwards. Yuki laid down next to her boyfriend, who brought her into his arms and gave her a silent thank-you kiss. They looked back at the sky and simply enjoyed their surroundings and the silence.

Takamura began to crawl backwards. The other boxers watched him go before they looked back to the couple then at each other. With a nod, they copied the actions. At last, they left the couple alone. When they were a safe distance away, they got up and threw a last look at the scene. All shared a smile, one that was relaxed. This woman may not be what they expected, but she exceeded their expectations. Now they could relax, with the knowledge that their friend was in good hands.


End file.
